University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota-Wisconsin Notes & Quotes
2/15/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game Notes
• Minnesota now leads the all-time series against Wisconsin 91-82.
• Jim Molinari is now 7-12, and 3-9 in Big Ten play as the head coach of the Gophers. Molinari is 223-181 all-time as a head coach.
• Lawrence McKenzie has hit a three-pointer in 34 straight games, spanning his first 26 games as a Golden Gopher and his final eight games at Oklahoma.
• McKenzie scored in double figures for the 21st time in his Golden Gopher career, and the 49th time in his collegiate career.
• McKenzie has scored 20 or more points in seven games during his career.
• McKenzie is now in second-place all time in single season three-point field goals with 70.
• Spencer Tollackson scored in double figures for the 13th time this season and the 24th time in his career.
• Dan Coleman scored in double figures for the 23rd time this season and for the 45th time in his career.
• Coleman registered his 13th multi-block game of the season and the 19th of his career.
• Brandon Smith had his second multi-steal game of the season and the third of his career.
Post-Game Quotes
Minnesota Head Coach Jim Molinari
On Minnesota’s defensive effort:
“The effort usually shows up on defense. I thought our effort in the first half was great. I thought we played physical. When I think about Wisconsin, I think they’re very physical. I thought that was a good sign that we played physical and controlled the tempo. I thought these guys played with a lot of effort.”
On the difference from Minnesota’s first game against Wisconsin:
“I think we played them differently this time. The first time we got off to a good start and it was kind of fool’s gold. We weren’t really banging with them. This time we banged with them. We missed a lay-up with six minutes remaining, and that would have cut it to two. There was no margin for error after that. I think Spencer (Tollackson) fouling out and missing that lay-up were two big factors.”
On Alando Tucker:
“That’s probably why he’s the player of the year. I look, and I think they’re contested shots. I just think he jumps up and hits them. That’s why he could be the national player of the year. He does a tremendous job of taking on the challenge. Sometimes good defense gets beat by talent. I think our defense was fine; his talent won over.”
On Minnesota’s overall development:
“Great hearts are forged in great trouble. I think these kids are getting better and better. I really believe that. I think they’re coming more together, I think they’re fighting harder and I think they’re playing with each other. I think they’re growing. I feel bad for them. I don’t think as we grow that we understand how important winning is to younger people. It’s really huge to them. It’s a lot of their identity. When they give what they’re giving day in and day out and not getting rewarded, it’s really hard. I think we’re getting a lot better.”
Wisconsin Head Coach Bo Ryan
On the difference between the two halves:
“We got better shots, moved the ball better and took care of it better. We didn’t have a lot of turnovers in the first half, but we were taking the first easy look. We got much better looks in the second half and that’s why you shoot a higher percentage and get to the free throw line.”
On the play of Jason Chappell:
“Tollackson got comfortable early in the second half and you can’t let a guy stay that comfortable. He did a good job of coming out of the game, taking a look at what was going on and coming back in the game and making something positive happen.”
On Alando Tucker’s free throw shooting struggles:
“Alando’s lift just wasn’t there, and he’s been shooting it better too. It’s something he has to keep working on, but he’ll come back from it. He’s had stretches like that before. Fortunately, it didn’t cost us anything here tonight.”
On McKenzie’s three-point shooting:
“Sometimes when you rotate on penetration or on a post-feed you get caught down in the paint trying to make sure you don’t give up the high percentage shot. We got some of those too, but you have to know where he is because everybody knows he can score.”
On the play of Alando Tucker:
“Alando is opportunistic. He was drawing a lot of attention on his cuts, and when that happens it opens opportunities for somebody else. That’s what Alando does. He draws attention and he makes plays.”
On the play of Kammron Taylor:
“He was steady. He always knows he can play better from a floor leadership standpoint. That’s something I work with point guards on until their last game. The key is making sure we’re getting into our offense and getting good shots, and that was better in the second half.”
Minnesota Players
Junior center Spencer Tollackson
On Minnesota’s play:
“It was probably the best game we played all year. I thought we played really well, but you have to give credit to Wisconsin. Alando Tucker is the best player in college basketball, hands down. Nobody else even comes close.”
On fouling out for the second straight game:
“I’ve fouled out of two games in a row now. I don’t think I fouled out of a game my entire college career until now, so it’s frustrating, but I had faith in my team. We all thought we could get it done. It just didn’t happen.”
On how the team will handle this loss:
“We played well, but they’re still the third-ranked team in the country and we’ve won three Big Ten games. It’s a little bit hard to swallow because we played so well. A lot of things didn’t go our way tonight, but they beat us.”
On whether the possibility of an upset entered his mind:
“We thought we could do it the whole game. We were thinking it before the game and we stuck with them through the entire first half. They were up by four at halftime, so we were still in it. Up until about three minutes left, I thought we had a legitimate chance.”
Freshman guard Kevin Payton
On the play of Alando Tucker:
“He’s a good player and candidate for Player of the Year. He’s been doing a great job the entire season. I think Brandon did a great job on him.
“He can drive and has one of the quickest first steps in college basketball. He can put the ball up strong and get offensive rebounds. He’s just a really good player.”
On Wisconsin’s ability to hit the big shot:
“It’s part of basketball. They made some great plays down the stretch and came away with the win.”
On the team’s defensive performance down the stretch:
“It’s important to get key stops in big situations. We couldn’t get them and they made the plays.”
